Top 10 Scandals

10. Justin Bieber’s brothel visit

Nicky Loh / Getty Images

What happens in Rio definitely doesn’t stay in Rio. Justin Bieber got photographed leaving a popular Brazilian brothel in early November, and allegedly got kicked out of his hotel for too much partying. One of his classy new lady friends even filmed him sleeping, and the video went viral.

9. Reese Witherspoon arrest

City of Atlanta Department of Corrections / Reuters

Even Elle Woods couldn’t talk her way out of this legal trouble. When her husband, CAA agent Jim Toth, was pulled over for a DUI, Reese got out of the car and began arguing with the cops. She got booked for disorderly conduct, and her husband pled guilty to a DUI—and then the whole thing leaked to TMZ, showing Reese spouting lines like, “My name is Reese Witherspoon, this will be in the national news!” Yep.

8. Julianne Hough’s blackface

‘Twas the costume that launched a thousand blog posts: while dressing up as the inmate Crazy Eyes from “Orange Is The New Black” for Halloween, Hough, an actress and former Dancing With The Stars pro, took the get-up one step too far—by wearing blackface. Once photos appeared on the Internet, Hough apologized profusely, and Uzo Aduba, the actress who plays Crazy Eyes, told E! news, “I think maybe it was an unfortunate event but she apologized and I feel like we can all move on.”

7. Beyonce lip-synching national anthem

Stan Honda / AFP / Getty Images

There was a social-media outcry after Beyonce admitted to lip-syncing the national anthem during President Obama’s inauguration in January. (Her excuse: she did not have time for a sound check with the band and she didn’t want to risk messing up and drawing attention away from the President.) But the mockery didn’t last long: before addressing reporters at a pre-Super Bowl press conference a few days later, she sang the national anthem acapella—flawlessly. “Any questions?” she asked.

6. Bob Filner’s sexual harassment

Gregory Bull / AP

Filner, who served in Congress for almost 10 years, said he would shake things up when he was elected mayor of San Diego in November 2012. And he did—by getting slapped with a massive sexual harassment lawsuit. He resigned in August, and pled guilty to false imprisonment and battery charges in October.

5.Lance Armstrong’s doping

Mario Tama / Getty Images

After admitting to Oprah in January that his career had been “one big lie” and that he had, in fact, doped up before races, the world’s most decorated cyclist—and an inspiration to thousands of cancer survivors—lost lost his endorsements, had to give back all his medals, and was banned from cycling for life.

4.Rob Ford’s crack-smoking

Aaron Harris / Reuters

“Yes, I have smoked crack cocaine,” the Toronto mayor admitted to the press in November, months after a video of said drug use had been peddled to several media outlets, including Gawker. But that was just the beginning of a Ford scandal whirlwind that included him pushing a Toronto council member and allegations that he may have had oral sex with one of his advisors. (“I’m happily married and I’ve got more than enough to eat at home,” he said.) Ford still refuses to resign as mayor, even as Toronto City Council strips him of almost all his powers. In fact, he told FOX News he wants to be Prime Minister.

3. Paula Deen using the N-word

Peter Kramer / NBC / Getty Images

Even sugar and butter can’t get rid of the bad taste left by Deen’s racism scandal. After Deen admitted during a deposition that she had “of course” used the N-word—among allegations that she had also hoped to have an all-black team of waiters serve the guests at her brother’s plantation-themed wedding—she found herself at the center of a media firestorm. Days after the comments leaked (and several bizarre apology videos), she had lost her Food Network contract as well as partnerships with QVC and Smithfield foods.

2. Anthony Weiner’s sexting (again)

Eric Thayer / Reuters

Last year, the New York congressman was forced to resign after getting caught tweeting an illicit photo to a 21-year-old girl in Seattle. But he said he had turned over a new leaf in April, when he announced his campaign for Mayor of New York. Turns out that “new leaf” was just a thinly disguised internet pseudonym: Carlos Danger, which he used send illicit pics to at least three women after his initial scandal. This time, however, he refused to leave politics after the new details broke, and continued his mayoral campaign. He came in 5th place, with 4.9 percent of the vote.

1. Manti Te’o’s fake girlfriend

Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Te’o was a tragic football hero: a Mormon linebacker at Notre Dame so in love with his car-accident survivor/leukemia-patient girlfriend Lennay Kekua that he would stay on the phone with her all night as she slept, then lead his team to victory the day after she passed away. Except Lennay Kekua didn’t get into a car accident, and she didn’t have leukemia, because Lennay Kekua was the online alias of a man named Roniah Tuiasosopo (as our very own Jack Dickey discovered in January when he was working at Deadspin). The revelation—and subsequent fallout—dominated headlines for weeks, and helped mainstream the concept of getting “catfished,” or tricked into online-dating a person who doesn’t actually exist.